Koran Burning Preacher Wants to Protest Muslims - With a Gun in his Pocket?

The news about Terry Jones, the Qur'an-burning Baptist preacher, just gets better and better: now there's a "gun incident" for our amusement. Except that Jones isn't a very amusing guy.

This morning, Terry Jones was in court in Dearborn, Michigan trying to convince a judge and jury that the city of Dearborn should be forced to give Jones a permit to protest Sharia law outside a local Muslim mosque.

Can you imagine what the judge and jury will think when Jones tells them the "gun incident" isn't important?

Gun incident?? What gun incident? Why, the one where

Westboro Baptist: A Tribute to Elizabeth Taylor

"No RIP Elizabeth Taylor who spent her life in adultery and enabling proud f-gs. They cuss her in hell today. #Westboro will picket funeral!" That was the tweet sent out by the ultra homophobic gay-bashing Westboro Baptist church according to MSNBC.

If Westboro Baptist is protesting Elizabeth Taylor, it should remind all of us what a goo friend she was to the LGBT community. She used her celebrity status to fight for gay rights and all human rights. She was a relentless fundraiser for HIV/AIDS and raised millions. She also was a huge influence in raising awareness of AIDS and the rights of AIDS victims.

Westboro Baptist is now reviled by just about everyone from the

Divorce: Why Christians don't care about YOU

There's a new Christian movement to "get tough on divorce," which sounds great. We all agree that divorce is bad. But when I read the details, I was surprised, almost horrified, at its anti-family tone. You'd think getting tough on divorce meant supporting families, but it turns out to be the opposite. As far as I can tell, it's a "Don't embarrass your Church" campaign.

Christians have a commendable respect for family, marriage and the importance of children. In fact, they often want to claim the high road, that those who embrace God and Jesus are inherently better parents and have happier, healthier families. Organizations like "Focus on Family" even make claims like this:

"The panel first suggested that newlyweds should establish and maintain a Christ-centered home. Everything rests on that foundation. If a young husband and wife are deeply committed to Jesus Christ, they enjoy enormous advantages over a family with no spiritual dimension."

Unfortunately, the facts don't bear this out. The most religious Christians are the most likely to get divorced! (For more information see Southern Baptist Convention's Resolution On The Scandal Of Southern Baptist Divorce, which lays it out in detail.)

Well, enough is enough. They've decided to Get Tough on Divorce.

On the surface this seems like a laudable mission. Divorce is a terrible time for a family. It's a time of broken dreams, a time when love turns to bitterness and often hate, and when children's idyllic vision of parental love and home stability is shattered.

But when you read Southern Baptist Theological Seminary president Rev. Albert Mohler's key essay, none of that seems to matter. His writings, and all the others I could find, are strangely devoid of any concern for the actual families. Instead, you find stuff like this:

Woman Preacher Gets Southern Baptist Church Expelled

It's hard to believe in these modern times that there is still overt, legal discrimination against women. But leave it to religion to be in the dark ages when everyone else has seen the light. The Druid Hills Baptist Church, a thriving Southern Baptist congregation in Atlanta, Georgia, has been declared "not a cooperating church" because its associate pastor is a woman (*gasp*!).

The official policy of the Southern Baptist Convention is that the role of pastor is "limited to men as qualified by Scripture."

Yeah, that's the right idea! Let's take the morals of a bunch of farmers, goatherds and rabbis who lived two thousand years ago, and decide that by golly, they got it right!

Southern Baptists Again Show Hatred of Gays

This one is too much to ignore. The Southern Baptists claim to "love the sinner, but hate the sin" when it comes to gays, but this thin veil, this lame attempt to cover up their true feelings, is coming unraveled. The SBC's news organization just published this hateful news piece, which shows their true colors. Here are a few of their official statements:

LaBarbera took issue with Barna using the term "homosexual Christians." "My test is to substitute another sexual sin and see if it makes sense," he told OneNewsNow.com. "Would we be talking about a survey of porn-using Christians or incestuous Christians? That sounds stark, but that's, I believe, the appropriate biblical analogy."

Got that? Homosexuality and incest are equivalent. Or how about this gem:

I think there are Christians who struggle with the sin of homosexuality — but proud homosexual Christians? That's an oxymoron to me in the same way as I would say proud adulterous Christians.

So a gay couple who love and support each other, remain faithful and modest, for decade after decade, are no better than the philandering Senator Ensign who cheated on his faithful wife? Ensign's philandering was a terrible personal tragedy for his wife, who suffered embarrassment, humiliation and the loss of everything she'd worked so hard for in her marriage. How can anyone possibly think that two men or two women who find love and companionship are even committing a sin, much less a sin of the same magnitude as adultery?

If I believed in God and the Heaven/Hell myth, I know one thing: Mr. LeBarbera and his cronies in the Southern Baptist Church would be the ones headed in Satan's direction.

Jimmy Carter Quits Southern Baptist Church

I've always admired former President Jimmy Carter for his genuine honesty and integrity. These seem like such simple principles, yet they are sadly lacking in so many politicians. My opinion of the man shot up even more with his announcement that, after sixty years as a member of the Southern Baptist Church, he is leaving the Southern Baptist Church because of their oppressive policies about women.

And Mr. Carter didn't just sever his ties, he did so with strong words, calling the SBC's policies oppressive, and reminding us that their Biblical justifications are the same ones used to excuse slavery, genital mutilation, violence and rape around the world.

The SBC, of course, couldn't take it gracefully, and had to do a bit of mud-slinging in an attempt to save face. They called Mr. Carter's actions "politically motivated," which is pretty funny considering that Mr. Carter has already achieved and retired from the highest office in the land. One has to wonder just how SBC thinks Jimmy Carter will further his career by speaking his mind.

P.S. Thanks to all my loyal subscribers for sticking with me through my recent hiatus from this blog. Personal events and priorities kept me away for a while, but it looks like I'm back now.